Social Content Optimization & Dissemination Really Do Matter

Optimizing and distributing content throughout social channels is the cornerstone of any social media, content marketing or brand publishing strategy. Developing good content and then deploying it in multiple formats across a variety of networks is a proven way to reach known audiences (and find new ones) with a message. And when done well, “social content optimization” (rapidly known by the abbreviation “SCO”) can trigger a viral sharing of the content, multiplying the audience for the message exponentially.

A blog post on David Armano’s Logic+Emotion blog caught my attention yesterday. In it author Greg Lipman shared a presentation (and the image at the top of this page) describing Edelman’s SCO process, which marries SEO with the social layer, to ensure content the agency develops is relevant to audience needs and interests, is written in the vernacular that will resonate with the audience, is search engine friendly and widely shared online. Lipman notes that Edelman considers search and social to be intertwined. (I agree wholeheartedly, despite the ever changing nature of the social network and search engine landscapes.)

The Edelman process is one every communicator should review, because it includes multiple content formats and correctly gives each element – text, photo, video, graphic etc. – special consideration from planning to execution. This is important, because different content types are weighted and treated differently by social networks and search engines, and generate different responses from audiences. (Related reading: Multimedia content generates more online views.) Lipman offers some good advice and a terrific content strategy map.

For those who took one look at Lipman’s map and decided there’s way too much involved in SCO, Joe Chernov of Eloqua outlined the strong connections between public relations, social media and search last week in a blog post titled “Content Marketing as a Force Multiplier.” In it he described six “compounding benefits” companies can derive from a content marketing program, noting that content drives PR and social media, feeds demand generation and creates sales opportunities, improves SEO and ultimately, begets more content. The cumulative effect of mindfully integrating efforts across networks, platform and content formats can’t be denied.

At least, that’s what I think. This blog post originally started as an e-mail to some colleagues, to which a link to Armano’s post was attached, about revisiting some aspects of our own approach to content dissemination. What aspects of Lipman’s map caught your attention?